Georgia Tech to retire Teixeira's No. 23
Apr. 6—The Georgia Tech baseball program announced Thursday that it will retire the No. 23, worn by former Yellow Jacket standout, and former Atlanta Braves first baseman, Mark Teixeira.
Teixeira will be honored in a special pregame ceremony on May 20, before Georgia Tech takes on Virginia at noon. His number will join only two previously retired numbers in program history — No. 44 for infielder and eventual head coach Jim Luck and No. 33 for Jason Varitek.
"To be able to retire Mark Teixeira's number is one of my great honors as a head coach," head coach Danny Hall said. "Mark has meant so much to this program, and to Georgia Tech, in his time as both a player and as an alum. His accomplishments on the field speak for themselves as to how great a player he was on The Flats and in the Major Leagues. He is undoubtedly deserving of this prestigious honor and I'm proud to have been his coach."
One of the top performers in Yellow Jacket history, Teixeira earned a long list of honors, including the 2000 Dick Howser Trophy (National Player of the Year), 2000 ACC Player of the Year, 2000 consensus first-team All-American, 1999 National Freshman of the Year, 1999 ACC Rookie of the Year and 1999 second-team All-American. He was also named to the All-ACC first team twice (1999, 2000).
From Baltimore, Maryland, Teixeira batted .409 during his three-year career while slugging 36 home runs and 165 RBI. He ranks fourth in school history in career batting average (.409) and second in slugging percentage (.712), and holds the school record for most runs scored in a season with 104. As a sophomore in 2000, Teixeira batted .427 with 18 home runs and 80 RBI, posting the seventh-best batting average for a single-season in school history. That performance helped Georgia Tech win the 2000 ACC regular season and tournament championships as well as the NCAA Atlanta Regional title.
Teixeira was selected by the Texas Rangers with the fifth overall pick of the 2001 MLB Draft, and continued his excellence over a 14-year career. He'd play in three All-Star games, win five Gold Gloves, three Silver Sluggers, and win the 2009 World Series as a member of the New York Yankees. He also spent parts of the 2007-2008 seasons with the Braves.
Teixeira was elected to the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. An Academic All-American in 2000, he returned to campus after retiring from professional baseball and completed his degree in business administration in 2022.
